Andy Murray beats Stan Wawrinka, advances to semifinals at ATP finals

Andy Murray of Britain reacts during his ATP Finals match against Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland at the O2 Arena in London.(Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth, AP)

LONDON (AP) — Andy Murray kept hold of the No. 1 ranking for at least another day.

The Wimbledon champion qualified for the semifinals of the ATP finals on Friday by beating Stan Wawrinka 6-4, 6-2.

Murray, who needs to do better than Novak Djokovic this weekend to finish the season as the top-ranked player, broke Wawrinka late in the first set and twice at the start of the second.

“I feel like my game is in a good place,” Murray said. “Played much better today than I did a couple days ago. Physically I feel good. So looking forward to the weekend.”

Murray took over the No. 1 ranking at the Paris Masters this month, but Djokovic can grab it back if the second-ranked Serb does better at the season-ending tournament. Djokovic has already qualified for the semifinals.

Murray will next face Milos Raonic on Saturday, while Djokovic meets Kei Nishikori.

“(Raonic) obviously serves big, goes for his shots. He moves forward when he has the chance. I think he probably likes the…